Eve Bowen and a colleague are leading a tour from May 12-26, 2009 along the Silk Road through cities in China including Beijing, Kashgar, Turpan, and Dunhuang. The itinerary provides details of activities and sights in each location like the Great Wall and Mogao Caves. The price is £2,695 per person based on double occupancy including flights, guides, transportation between cities, and meals. Insurance and some personal expenses are additional costs.

1. Interchange
INTERCHANGE.....SO MUCH MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE
Interchange House, 27 Stafford Road, Croydon, Surrey CR0 4NG
Tel: 020 8681 3612 Fax 020 8760 0031 Email: interchange@interchangeworldwide.com Web: www.interchangeworldwide.com
SILK ROAD EXPLORATION
BEIJING / URUMQI/ KASHGAR / TURPAN / DUNHUANG / JIAYUGUAN / LANZHOU / BEIJING
12th – 26th May 2009
LEADERS – Eve Bowen and a colleague The origins of the route lie in the first century BC, desert. The sinister translation of the Uighur word
Following the success of Eve Bowen’s previous when Emperor Wu despatched General Zhang Taklamakam is the ‘land of no return’.This imposing
trips to China, she and a colleague are now Qian to the western regions to seek out the desert divided the Silk Road into a northern and
planning to lead a tour to explore the highlights of horses of Ferghana, to establish peace among the southern detour, the former along the Tianshan
the old Silk Road. warmongering tribes of the area and ultimately mountain range, and the latter through the
INTRODUCTION secure a safe passage for itinerant merchants.
foothills of the Kunlun range.
The Silk Road was the first and principal channel of On this itinerary of special interest are the sandy
The ascendancy of large and efficient maritime
trade and cultural exchange between East and ruins of the thriving towns and settlements which
trade organisations effectively made the Silk Road
West. Along the Silk Road, Buddhism and Islam were staging posts on the route and which are to
be found in the Xinjiang-Uighur Autonomous uneconomic and the sands of time and desert
found their way into China, while silk and exotic
spices were exported to the West. The inimitable region of China. Many of their most important buried its traces until the 19th century when a
Marco Polo stumbled across the route in the artefacts remain – their contribution to religious small band of notorious adventurers, explorers and
thirteenth century and he is considered responsible art is to be found in the grottoes which are archaeologists exhumed the route again. Would
for introducing Chinese noodles to the west. scattered on the edge of the fearsome Taklamakam you like to join this band?
ITINERARY & sheep, brightly coloured fabrics, fur hides & hats, DAY 11 FRIDAY – DUNHUANG, B/L/D
handmade carpets & knives. Breakfast in hotel.
DAY 1 TUESDAY
Depart London Heathrow, Terminal 3, on DAY 7 MONDAY – Morning visit to Mogao Grottoes.
Air China Flight CA938 at 19.25 hours. URUMQI/TURPAN, B/L/D Afternoon at leisure.
Breakfast in hotel. Evening music & dancing show.
DAY 2 WEDNESDAY – BEIJING, D
Morning flight CZ6804 for Urumqi Overnight at Silk Road Dunhuang Hotel
Arrive Beijing 12.25 hrs.
(1105/1245). (4 star).
Transfer to Bamboo Garden Hotel Lunch on arrival & transfer to Turpan
(3 star plus). DAY 12 SATURDAY –
Check in at Turpan Hotel (3 star).
Stroll in neighbourhood. Evening roast lamb dinner with singing & DUNHUANG/JIAYUGUAN/, B/L/D
Evening Welcome Dinner in hotel with dancing show. Breakfast in hotel.
Peking Roast Duck & Wine. Morning coach transfer to Jiayuguan.
Since 1882 Urumqi has been the capital of Xinjiang, its
DAY 3 THURSDAY – BEIJING, B/L/D Afternoon visit Great Wall.
constant growth enhanced at first by the strategic &
Breakfast in Hotel. commercial importance & then from 1955 when oil was Overnight at Great Wall Hotel (3 star).
Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City. discovered at Karamai. The garrison town of Jiayuguan in Gansu Province was
Temple of Heaven. built in 1372 to guard the western end of the Great Wall
DAY 8 TUESDAY – TURPAN, B/L/D
Overnight at Bamboo Garden Hotel. during the Ming dynasty.
Breakfast in hotel.
DAY 4 FRIDAY BEIJING, B/L/D Full day at ruins of Gaochang, Jiaohe, DAY 13 SUNDAY –
Breakfast in Hotel. Emin Minaret. JIAYUGUAN/LANZHOU B/L/D
Great Wall. Overnight at Turpan Hotel. Breakfast in a hotel.
Summer Palace.
Turpan was once an important staging post on the Silk Visit tombs of Wei & Jin Dynasties.
Evening Peking Opera.
Road. Its large oasis produces most of the best grapes in Old Bell Tower.
Overnight at Bamboo Garden Hotel. China.You can see the ancient Karez system of irrigation Jiuquan Park.
DAY 5 SATURDAY – where the melted snow from the surrounding mountains Evening train to Lanzhou.
BEIJING/URUMQI/KASHGAR, B/L/D is brought down to the town in underground channels, all
Overnight on train.
Breakfast in Hotel. dug by hand & stretching around some 3000km.
Morning flight CZ6904 for Urumqi DAY 14 MONDAY – LANZHOU, B/L/D
DAY 9 WEDNESDAY –
(0845/1250). TURPAN/DUNHUANG, B/L/D 07.12 AM arrival in Lanzhou.
Lunch on arrival & visit Xinjiang Museum. Breakfast in hotel. Transfer to hotel for breakfast & freshen up.
Transfer to flight CZ6805 for Kashgar Visit Flaming Mountain & local minorities’ Cruise on Yellow River.
(1910/2040). homes. Gansu Provincial Museum.
Transfer to hotel. Evening train to Dunhuang. White Tower Hill.
Dinner in the hotel. Overnight on train. Evening farewell dinner with wine.
Overnight at Yambu Grand Hotel (3 star). Overnight at Legend Hotel (4 star).
DAY 10 THURSDAY – DUNHUANG, B/L/D
DAY 6 SUNDAY – KASHGAR, B/L/D 0814 Arrive. Breakfast on arrival & bus With mountains in the south & north of the city & the
Breakfast in hotel. transfer to hotel. Yellow River flowing from the east to the west, Lanzhou is
Morning in Sunday Bazaar. Afternoon visit Ming Sha Shan (Sounding a beautiful modern city with both the grand beauty of
Afternoon visit Grand Mosque & British Sand Hill) & Crescent Springs. northern cities & the prettiness of southern cities.
Consulate. Overnight at Silk Road Dunhuang Hotel
Overnight at Yambu Grand Hotel (3 star). (4 star). DAY 15 TUESDAY –
LANZHOU/BEIJING/LONDON, B
A visit to Kashgar is like going back in time. Its narrow The first view of the honeycomb of about 3,000 caves,
maze of alleyways & open air markets display all the Morning flight to Beijing & transfer to the
built into the sheer cliff at the foot of Mount Mingsha &
myriad faces of Central Asia with Uighur, Kirghiz, Tajik & crowned by a nine-storey tower with upswept eaves, is an flight back to London.
Kazakh merchants & locals, all busy haggling over camels awesome sight for the traveller. NB. Flight times subject to change.

2. Price £2,695 per person
per person based upon sharing a twin-bedded room with private facilities
Included
• Meals as specified. B = Breakfast / L = Lunch / D = Dinner
• Accommodation as specified.
• Full-time leader Miss Eve Bowen and a colleague.
• Services of our expert Chinese guides in each city in China.
• Accommodation sharing twin-bedded rooms with private facilities.
• Performances as specified.
• All transfers and transportation between the cities as specified in the itinerary.
• International flights on Air China.
• Domestic flights (aircraft types unknown at time of going to press).
• Chinese visa.
• UK and local departure taxes.
• Full briefing information pack.
Not Included
• Insurance – it is a requirement that you have insurance for your holiday. Interchange can offer a quote on request.
• Items of a personal nature (e.g. laundry, drinks, gifts).
• Single room supplement of £235.
• Optional tips for the guides, drivers and hotel porters.
NB. Programme details may vary according to local circumstances. The tour will often be strenuous, but participants are entirely free to take
time out to follow their inclinations during the tour. The programme is based on a minimum of 10 persons.
Passports & Visas
A valid UK 10 year passport is required for entry into China with a minimum validity of 6 months from the date of departure
from China. A visa is required which we will obtain for you.
Health
At the time of writing no vaccinations are compulsory. The Department of Health produces a useful leaflet (T4) covering travel outside
the EC which can be ordered by telephoning (0800) 555777 – free of charge. Typhoid, tetanus, polio, malaria and hepatitis A and B
precautions are all advised.
You should contact your Doctor well ahead of your departure who will be able to give you professional advice and arrange any
vaccinations and advice on Malaria protection.
If you require any particular medicine be sure to take an ample supply as you may not always be able to obtain your requirements locally.
Currency & Air Fares
Local costs are based on £1 = US$ 1.95 as published in the Financial Times on 4th June 2008 and airfares as 4th June 2008.
Booking
Contact Interchange Croydon office, 27 Stafford Road, Croydon, Surrey CR0 4NG
Tel: 020-8681-3612 Fax: 020-8760-0031 E-mail: interchange@interchangeworldwide.com
quoting the reference EVE/CHINA
INTERCHANGE has specialised in China programmes since the mid 1970’s.
Consumer Protection
The air holiday in this leaflet is ATOL Protected, since we hold an Air Travel Organiser’s Licence granted by the Civil Aviation
Authority. Our ATOL number is ATOL 2429 (G. Burnett trading as Interchange.) In the unlikely event of our insolvency, the CAA
will ensure that you are not stranded abroad and will arrange to refund any money you have paid to us for an advance booking.
For further information, visit the ATOL website at www.atol.org.uk
We reserve the right to change the information in our leaflet.
This leaflet is issued on the sole responsibility of the Tour Operator. It is not issued on behalf of and does not commit the Airline(s) mentioned therein,
or any Airline whose services are used in the course of the tour. The liability of any Airline involved in the carriage of passengers
and their baggage shall be limited by the terms and conditions of carriage of the Airlines.